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It’s the season for gift-giving and family visits — and the coach has two puzzles on those themes this week.

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Good Relations

Chris says: “Nieces and nephews have I none, but Alex’s father-in-law is my mother-in-law’s son.”

How are Chris and Alex related?

Square Purchases

Last December, the coach purchased several gifts and noted that each one cost a perfect square number of dollars. When the set of prices was written down, every integer from 1 to 9 appeared exactly once.

If the total cost was the minimum possible, what was the total bill and how many gifts did he buy?